Abortion and personhood - Essay Example

Although highly controversial, the Roe decision, specifically, and the abortion debate, in general, continues to be one of the most significant issues, both from a theological and a moral perspective. When examining the use of the concept of personhood from an ethical standpoint, Gibson2 points out traditionally the debate surrounding abortion is, in actuality, a debate over whether a woman has the right to maintain control over her own body. Although there is little disagreement that women are afforded the right to choose, the right to privacy, the right to control their bodies and the right to self-determination, these distinctions become less clear when a woman wishes to execute these rights at the expense of a fetus.

At this point, pro-life proponents would argue that the rights of the fetus outweigh those of the host (i.e. the pregnant female). Herein, lays the problem of basing the morality of abortion on personhood. According to Gibson when this is done there are three theoretical frameworks that are present each of which acknowledge and define personhood as occurring at different stages of fetal development. These three varying positions as to when personhood is present and translated into rights are the basic camps of the abortion debate.

The first is that personhood and therefore the right to life is present at conception. The second, as argued by Aquinas, is that the right to life is present at some point after conception, but before birth. Lastly, the third position holds that the fetus does not possess any right to life, therefore personhood, until birth. Gibson notes that although these various camps of pro-choice versus pro-life differ as to their belief systems, both from a moral and theological standpoint, they all base these positions on the notion, directly or indirectly on personhood which, in effect, focuses not on the right of the woman but on the moral status of